there as recently as the 16th of february. they think they are on a spiritual retreat. jamie's sister is worried. >> i haven't seen a video of her since january 25, so to me, anything could have happened since then, you know? i hope that she is just having a blast. >> reporter: jamie's coworkers at an east bay bike shop have launched an effort to find them. they posted flyers and have set up a fund to raise money. the family's last facebook post says there's still no financial activity, no social media activity, no communication at all from the two. cate caugiran, kpix 5. still no sign of a family reported in trouble at sea despite a search that continues through the night. the coast guard wants to know if you recognize this voice making the distress call. >> coast guard,coast guard, we are abandoning ship. this is the charm glow we are abandoning ship. >> 36 hours after that distress call there is still no sign of

the 29-foot sailboat. they supposedly sank 65 miles offshore from monterey. the couple who radioed in the distress call said they were on a raft with two children in tow. so far no sign of them or the wreckage. no boats have been reported missing from any california marina and no one seems to have ever heard of the charmblow. we now know that it was a san jose couple who died while scuba diving off carmel. vladimir and marina buttski were found floating face down on friday. they died at the hospital. both certified divers and a preliminary investigation found their equipment was working fine at the time. state park officials say the spot where they were diving is a safe shallow area. a west sacramento police officer is accused of sexually assaulting women won duty. sergio alvarez is charge with stopping women while he worked alone on the graveyard ship and

assaulting them in his patrol car or elsewhere. the alleged victim are 0 to 47 -- 20 to 47. the married father of through he was arrested after a five- month investigation. >> i'm -- the married father of three was arrested after a five-month investigation. >> i'm appalled and sickened that someone in a position of trust would violate that trust. >> alvarez faces 35 felony charges and his bail is $26 million. six suspects in a san francisco murder are due back in court for a preliminary hearing today. a man and a woman were found bound and gagged on a city street back in december. the man had been shot and eventually died. police say the suspect and the victims knew each other. it is 4:34 now. today the san jose city council votes on a ban on styrofoam food containers at restaurants. the containers clutter waterways, clog landfills and threaten wildlife. owners say it would push up

container costs and they don't have alternatives that work well. officials in san bruno will take up the issue of gun violence. tonight the city council will consider a resolution that would support legislation at the state and federal levels. councilmembers are also trying to come up with local measures that would be effective. tonight city council's meeting starts at 7:00. another milestone for the upcoming america's cup yacht race. a ribbon-cutting is going to be tonight at the terminal in san francisco the headquarters for the 34th america's cup. if you were looking at the bay yesterday, a couple of oracle boats were out there sailing. 4:35. let's check the weather with lawrence. >> yeah. weather looking good out there, too. the next few days some of those temperatures getting near 70 degrees, maybe just over that. so really a taste of spring

coming our way as high pressure is trying to build in. breezy in spots but out over the bay now mostly clear skies. we have seen reports of a couple of patches of fog at the coastline. but that's just about it. temperatures this morning not too bad. 47 in san francisco. the storm track will stay north even though this ridge is weak. it's just enough to bump the jet to the north keeping the storms there. we stay dry for the foreseeable future. high pressure continues to sit overhead probably going to strengther latter part of the week. average temperatures in the 60s, weather repeat for the day, we'll see a lot of sunshine by the afternoon, as high as 66 in santa rosa, 64 in san jose and 58 degrees in san francisco. we'll have more on your weather coming up. right now, let's check the roads with elizabeth. >> we are going to take out towards the east bay. there is a lot of overnight roadwork in lanes. they are in the process of working to clear up some roadwork on southbound lanes of 880 right here in oakland near

the oakland coliseum and high street. then there's more roadwork continuing southbound all the way into san leandro approaching marina boulevard but all that will wrap up by 5:00. they are already in the clearing stages. dublin interchange, westbound 580, free and clear all the way out from the altamont pass. in the eastbound direction, once again, they have lanes closed approaching north greenville road again eastbound 580 but in the commute direction still looking good moving at the limit. elsewhere, westbound 4 approaching pinole valley road -- that's actually westbound 80 approaching pinole valley road. an accident is in the clearing stages so hopefully no lanes are blocked. it should be on the right-hand shoulder. 18 minutes from the carquinez bridge to the maze. a quick check of the south bay. we have overnight roadwork on stretches of highway 85. we'll show you where that is coming up. in the meantime, back to you guys. >> thank you. 4:37 now. an oyster farm in the point

reyes national seashore has won a reprieve from the federal court. a panel of three judges from the ninth circuit court of appeals granted an injunction that will allow the drakes bay oyster company to stay open for the time being. the owners are challenge a decision by the interior secretary ken salazar to deny a permit extension. >> they can rule at that point only that we can't be shut down while the lawsuit is under way. and then at the end of the lawsuit, which will be however long, a year or year and a half, then final decisions will be made. >> the appeals court cited hardship for some 30 workers who would all lose their jobs. the court put the case on the fast track schedule. arguments will be heard in san francisco sometime in mid-may. another budget deadline is approaching on capitol hill. less than three days are left for the white house and lawmakers to find a way to avoid across-the-board spending cuts. but as susan mcginnis reports, no official negotiations are

planned at this time. reporter: president obama heads to a virginia shipbuilding town today. newport news, virginia, is home to many navy and defense contractors. families there could face layoffs if automatic budget cuts kick in this friday. >> a lot of folks were already pretty thinly stretched scrambling to figure out what to do. >> reporter: republicans in congress are criticizing the president saying he should stay in washington. >> stop campaigning and come back to the table and work with us! >> reporter: the main sticking point between the white house and congressional republicans, taxes. the president wants to close tax loopholes along with spending cuts. republicans say they raised taxes in the "fiscal cliff" deal in january. >> mr. president, you got your tax increase. it's time to cut spending here in washington! >> reporter: there seems to be a willingness on the part of some republicans to let the cuts happen figuring since they are phased in over several months the impact won't be as severe as the president

suggests. the president said during a meeting of the nation's governors monday, the budget cuts are already being felt. >> companies are preparing layoff notices. families are preparing to cut back on expenses. >> reporter: but some republican governors aren't buying it. >> i think it is possible to cut less than 3% of the federal budget without causing devastating consequences. >> reporter: the president is using scare tactics, they say. susan mcginnis, cbs news, washington. >> senate democrats and senate republicans are expected to introduce separate bills this week but it's unlikely that either will pass. house republicans say they are waiting on the senate. 4:40 you know. coming up, the diet that can prevent the leading cause of death here in america. heart disease. >> plus, more than just dark circles. how sleepless nights can actually affect your genes. >> and deja vu? yeah, another storm slamming much of the united states. how crews plan to deal with a record snowfall coming up.

the nation's midsection... including areas, just starting

to recover from last week's blizzard. w, the storm is hi another winter storm is hitting the midsection of the country including areas just recovering from last week's blizzard. take a live look now at kansas city, missouri it's blanketed with snow there. kind of a little hard to see. it looks really cold out there. it brought snow and strong winds to north texas as well and surrounding areas yesterday forcing highway closures and cutting power to thousands. so far two deaths are linked to the storm. one each in kansas and oklahoma. stores are selling a lot of weather-related supplies. >> customers buying generators, ice melt, stuff like that, snow shovels. >> a state of emergency has been declared in kansas city. hundreds of flights have been canceled at airports in the region. and if you are going out to the airport today, call your airline. there wasn't a lot -- i ski with a buddy of mine from chicago a couple of weeks ago.

we haven't had any snow whatsoever. they are paying the piper now. i guess in new england and all over the place. >> we can't get the rain going here so we are keeping things dry, lots of sunshine coming our way again today. patchy fog along the immediate coastline. but not much. otherwise clear inside the bay and also into the valleys. temperatures running in the 30s and the 40s. by this afternoon, it will be sunny once again and these temperatures moving into the mid- to upper 60s in some spots inland. a lot of 60s and plenty of sunshine inside the bay. staying cool at the coastline into the upper 50s. still a weak ridge of high pressure we have a couple of systems that are pounding on the top of the ridge but the storm track is staying to the north so we'll keep things dry for now. maybe the next best chance of any raindrops just a slight chance saturday night into sunday. so we'll remain dry for now. in fact, the weather is likely going to warm up in the next come days. no delays expected out of sfo. but if you are traveling across the country, we just showed you those storms, they are headed

eastward and could cause problems. it dri dry in houston at 64. expecting some snow showers into denies today. mix of snow and rain in chicago and new york. looking at rain at 52 degrees. today 64 degrees in san jose, 68 paka and 59 in hayward. as high as 67 in brentwood. 58 in san francisco and 66 in santa rosa. next couple of days, boy, just some beautiful weather coming our way. maybe a few more clouds on thursday. but we start to warm things up. then we pop some 70s as we get into friday. partly cloudy, that weak system sliding through late saturday night and into sunday. that's a look at weather. let's check on traffic with elizabeth. >> thank you, lawrence. a lot of our overnight roadwork is wrapping up. most of it ends at 5 a.m. all this overnight stuff we're dealing with. so pretty much lanes are

starting to reopen. the bay bridge is one of the places where caltrans crews say they are clearing the scene in the next 15 minutes. if you notice in the background, maybe you see a few flashing lights. they still have a couple of lanes blocked towards the pay gates toward the metering lights but again they are -- they will be finishing shortly. elsewhere to the san mateo bridge, no problems both directions 14 minutes the drive time still out of hayward to the foster city free and clear over the flat section and the high-rise of that span. to the maps, to the south bay now. i mentioned some overnight roadwork still in lanes right you there through highway 85. so it's an on-ramp that's closed approaching fremont. closed until about 6:00 this morning. northbound 85, that fremont avenue on-ramp remains shut down. but it's actually the main lines of the freeway still look in the green in the clear. those speed sensors showing speeds over 40 miles per hour. if you are heading southbound 101, this is a live look right now. conditions across the golden gate bridge.

no delays to speak of. it's usually right around this time of the morning we see those lanes change trucks drive by. so far the drive time green, 16 minutes between 580 and the golden gate bridge toll plaza. highway 4 is moving exceptionally well so far this morning. 62 miles per hour as you pass a street. and no mass transit issues this morning. bart, muni, caltrain and ace all reporting everything on time. that is a check of your "timesaver traffic." back to you guys. >> green is good. thank you. >> green is good. >> thanks, liz. the vatican is now answering a couple of lingering questions about this week's retirement of pope benedict xvi. benedict will be known as the emeritus pope and will continue to wear white. as for the upcoming conclave to choose the pope as replacement, los angeles cardinal roger mahony plans to attendee spite allegations he covered up sexual abuse involving clergy. former san francisco archbishop stands by mahoney.

>> i believe he should at the conclave and i'm glad to see that he has left and look forward to seeing him there. >> more than 100 cardinals will gather at the vatican starting on thursday. italy's government could have a hard time reaching agreement on the eurozone debt crisis and other issues. no party won a majority in the senate. the political chaos in italy and anxiety over the federal spending cuts took a toll on wall street yesterday. the dow had its biggest one-day drop since november 7. investors will be listening closely to fed chief fed chairman ben bernanke today. he will be on capitol hill testifying before the senate banking committee about whether the fed will showdown or stop its bond buying program. tomorrow bernanke will appear before the house committee on financial services. u.s. government has started to sell the rest of its stake in general motors. in a report to congress, treasury department said it sold more than $156 million

worth of gm stock last month. report says the government has recovered 29 of its nearly $46 billion bailout for general motors cars will soon go by fly. gm and at&t teaming up to add 4- g wireless service in 2015 cars and trucks. the feature will let you ditch dvds and stream video to the back seat. it will boost gm's onstar navigational system allowing realtime traffic updates while you drive. show up to work or quit. sunnyvale-based yahoo's new ceo marissa mayer just dropped a bombshell on her employees, no more working from home. the hr department outlined the change in a memo to become the absolute best place to work, communication and collaboration will be important so we need to be working side by side. that was part of the memo there. workers who currently telecommute have until june to get comfortable working out of the office or leave. mayer is trying to turn yahoo around and said the company

needs to innovate faster. this morning's healthwatch, there is new evidence about how a chemical called bpa can harm children's health. bpa is used to make plastic containers. a study at duke medical school found it may disrupt a gene that's critical to the development of the brain. the findings raise new questions about whether bpa contributes to developmental disorders including a certain type of autism. there's new data showing that a mediterranean diet is better for you than a low fat regime. researchers in spain tracked people on each diet for years. the group on the mediterranean diet especially including extra virgin olive oil had a 30% lower incidence of heart attacks and strokes. the new england journal of medicine has a study online. well, it's a wake-up call about what's tossing and turning at night really does to your body. i think we should all listen to this. >> no kidding. it can change your genetic makeup. in a new british study, 26 volunteers slept fewer than six hours a night for one week.

subsequent blood tests showed the sleep loss disrupted the activity of more than 700 genes and these are genes that are critical to stress, inflammation, metabolism, your biological clock and even how we fight disease. >> it just underscores the importance for the need for a good amount of sleep during the night to try to set a regular bedtime, waking time and maximize nighttime sleep. >> previous studies have shown too little sleep can affect how your heart functions and how your brain works. we know that. >> that explains the last half hour anyway, right? [ laughter ] >> for sure. 4:51 now. a hard-fought victory. two of president obama's cabinet picks face key votes today. >> plus good news for trekkies. the out of this world honor for the iconic tv show. >> now the bald eagle has landed. the rescue you will see here on kpix 5. coming up.

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checking out your allergy forecast for today, still moderate. we have ash, juniper and alder causing problems around the bay area. more on your forecast coming up. >> and checking your bridges across the bay area, so far you are looking good if you are crossing the golden gate. they may have picked up the overnight roadwork approaching the bay bridge toll plaza. san mateo bridge is at the limit. "star trek" fans rejoice pluto's two newest tiny moons will be named vulcan.

vulcan was the nephew of pluto. mountain view based seti organized the contest. the suggestion came from william shatner, captain kirk, on the oscars the other night. vulcan was the home planet to mr. spock on all those "star trek" shows. >> that's cool! >> yeah. >> he is in his 80s. >> is he really? >> he is still bringing it. >> that's fitting that he named it. >> exactly. the eagle has landed literally. >> yes. after days on the run from a zoo in palo alto, a bald eagle returns to its handlers. kiet do was there as bird finally decided she had had enough fun. reporter: her name is sequoia and all weekend long she had the palo alto zoo worried sick. >> she as my baby. i'm not going to let her go. >> reporter: the 24-year-old bald eagle got spooked and wandered off during a flying exercise saturday. since then, her handlers have been tracking her with a radio receive along highway 101 in menlo park.

they have been using a whistle to get her attention, trying to entice her with a tasty meal of quail and mice. >> she will eventually come down, find the right place and be hungry enough and the moment will be right. >> reporter: finally after three days, sequoia apparently decided she wasn't going cold and hungry anymore. >> whoo! [ applause ] >> i was really, really happy and concentrating on holding on to the food really tight because she can smash in a fly- by and hoping she would come by me and not veer off at the last second. >> reporter: the zoo says there's a benefit to these incidents, messages about nature that kids will remember for a lifetime. >> why you are you smiling. i never seen an eagle before. >> reporter: is this a normal thing for a kid to see in redwood city? >> no. no. cats and dogs but not a eagle. >> reporter: sequoia has wandered off eight times in the last 24 years. it's not the first time and likely not the last. as the zoo says, eagles do

whatever eagles want to do. kiet do, kpix 5. >> that's a gorgeous bird. >> beautiful. and big! >> i know. >> bet that thing weighs 25, 30 pounds. >> gorgeous. it is 4:56. countdown to budget cut. yeah. will lawmakers reach a last- minute deal? >> plus a bay area couple goes mincing in peru. what we have learned that's giving the family hope this morning. >> i'm san jose where today the city council will vote whether or not to ban a specific item that could affect hundreds of businesses. i'll tell you what that is.

"elissa ad-lib >> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald. an oakland couple vanishes in peru. why family members say they are still holding out hope. >> reporter: i'm in san jose where the city council will decide whether or not to ban

styrofoam food containers. how this could affect local businesses. >> lots of sunshine coming our way, we could see 70s coming up. we'll talk about that coming up. >> and lanes remain blocked on southbound 280 through daly city because of overnight roadwork. we'll tell you where it's slow coming up. "timesaver traffic" in a little bit. good morning, it's tuesday, february 26. i'm michelle griego. >> hi, everyone. i'm frank mallicoat. it is 5:00 now. we begin with some developing news. a hot air balloon burst into flames and crashed in egypt today. it killed at least 18 people. the balloon was carrying foreign tourists over luxor when it went down in a sugar cane field. three victims went to the hospital. there are no word of victims from north america. the cause of the accident is unknown. a bay area couple missing in south america may have been spotted just 10 days ago. kpix 5 reporter cate caugiran is in the newsroom with word from peru on what the two might be doing.

>> reporter: good morning. well, kpix 5 spoke with a hostel operator who saw the couple this month and she believes they could still be in the area. peruvian tv reports these photos of garrett hand and jamie neal shows them taking a bus to lima on january 26 days after they stopped posting on facebook. the couple was on a bicycle tour of south america. their families say all communication stopped a month ago. the hostel operator said they were there february 16th, saying they stayed at her hostel twice and believes the couple is on spiritual retreat. she says she hopes the outside world will, quote, let them go to let them enjoy their time here. but garrett hand's mother says they are determined to find them. the family enlisted the help of the state dew point. >> somebody knows where garrett is. garrett and jamie neal, they